iPhone 6 Rumor Of The Week, Finally NFC Payment Support

Assuming the latest iPhone 6 rumor is true, Apple's next handset will feature pay-by-touch technology. That's because Apple is reportedly in cahoots with NXP Semiconductors, a chipmaker located in the Netherlands, to integrate near-field communication (NFC) technology into the iPhone 6, which Apple will likely unveil on September 9, 2014.

The lack of NFC support has been one of the main criticisms of the iPhone for the past few model releases. Whereas it's much easier to find an Android device supporting NFC than it is to find one that doesn't, Apple has turned a blind eye to the technology up to this point, though that's finally about to change, it seems.

It's believed the red box is where the NFC chip will go. Image Source: GeekBar

Further evidence of forthcoming NFC support can be found in a schematic that Chinese repair firm GeekBar shared with the web a week ago. According to MacRumors, some of the components on the schematic have been misidentified, though the part itself -- believed to be a version of NXP's PN65 NFC package used in several Android devices -- appears to be the real thing.

Take all this with a grain of salt. It's been a bit dizzying keeping up with all the iPhone 6 rumors, which seem to change by the day. For example, early on there was talk of the iPhone 6 using a rugged sapphire crystal display, though later reports said it will be a substrate at best. We've also heard plenty of chatter of there being two iPhone 6 models, one with a 4.7-inch display and another with a 5.5-inch screen, though more recently there have been reports that Apple might only release the 4.7-inch version at this time.

What we know for sure is that Apple has a press event planned for September 9. Given all the rumors and speculation floating around, that date can't come quick enough.